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G. N. TODD. COTTON HARVESTER.

No. 428,885. Patented M81. 18, 1880.

(No Model.)

8. N. TODD. GOTTUN HARVESTER.

180.428.888. Patented M81. 18, 1880.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

of the guard, and the labor of securing the 4tectl1,is considerableand attclided withjother UNITED STATES GEORGE N. TODD,` OF NEWl YORK, N.

4Y., ASSIGNOR TO TI-I TOI/D COTTON HARVESTER COMPANY, OF ILLINOIS.

QQTT 0N HARVESTER ,s PEciFIcATIoN fet-ming part of Letters Patent N. 423,895, dated Match is, 1890.

Application tiled September 25,1384. erisl No.143l953. (No model.)

To' all whontit may concern.-

t Be it known that I, GEORGE N. .Ton1 ,a

citizen of' the .United States, residing in Newl York, 'county of ew York, and State of New ,Yorin .have invented certain new and useful Improvements in CottontHarvesters, of which the following is a specification.

Prior to my invention, picker-stems for cot;

order to pick` the cotton therefrom have been .provided with picker-teeth secured in the body of the stemjvithin spaces 'formed between projections serving as guards forwarding off the branches of the plants from the teeth., and in an application which I have filed of even d'ate herewith, Serial No. 143,952, for Letters Patentof the United States, I have set forth a rotary picker provided with toothed straps passing between the guards of a rotary picker more especially-adapted for'a cottonharvester in which one or more large rotary pickers are employed.

In my said 'application I have shown .the

guards made separatefrom the straps and of an approximately elliptical form, so as to take Aupthe space occurring where a'c'ontinuous `strap is wound around a bent or curved cylinder or tube, and l also show in said application a picker having a continuous spiral guard with a toothe'd belt wound between the spirals. l

VThe diiculty of setting the teeth in the body of the stein so that the ends of the teeth shall all have a uniform relation to the .height obj cction able features, such as expense, time, skill, and the like.

The object of my present invention is .to obviate the objectionable features attending the setting of the teeth in the body vof the picker-stem, and to provide the strap itself with guards or ribs is wound about the straight cylindrical body -of the stem the ribs or vledges on the strap shallform guards alternating with the toothed This featul'eis evidently more ospeprior to its application to f whereby when the strap body, since a strap can be-`wound thereon so as to cover the entire face-of the cylinder, and obviously byvarranging the ribs on the strap or band with regard to the-width of the strap, the size ofthe cylinder, `and the desired numberof guards or their distances apart, a varietyof forms of guards can be produced, but prior to the application of the strap were eith er .formed integral with-or made separate and then secured to the strap.

Another object of. this invention partv to the picker-stems a continuous indi vidual axial rotation during their Y-bodily travel about the axis of .their support, whereby the cotton with which the stems come in Contact will be engaged by and wound upon .the stems with suiiicient security to prevent an 4accidental dropping thereof until removed by'suitable cleaner devices, which form no part of this invention, and, finally, to provide certain details of construction of novel vand eiicient character for the carrying out of my invention, all as illustrated in the drawings, in which Figure 1 represents a portion of a strap provided with picker-teeth and guards in accordance with my invention, -Figa 2 illustratesa strap of such character wound about the straight cylindrical body of a picker-stem with one end of the strap shown unwound.

Fig. 3 represents a portion of a toothed strap differently from the guards shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 4 illustrates la strap such as shown in picker-stem. Fig. 5 illustrates several forms o e. of several ways in whichthe picker-Sterns .tn be operated,and is a longiimdinal scction through a rotary cylinder supporting the picker-stems and combined with mechanisms suitable for operating the stem. ,Fig. 7 represents a section taken transversely through Fig. 6. y

The picker stems ,Af'cons'ist each of a straight cylindrical or equivalent shaped body portion a, provided with a facing of a level with 'the `outer acting ends of' the ,-,Qf guardaA .F.igftis. designed'` to'illustratev picker-teeth. The picker-teeth are set in'al bed or backingA formod'ofiaband-or strap D, 1;,

is to improvided with` guards arranged somewhat I Fig. 3 applied to the straight cylinder of a picker-teeth B and guards C, rising to about IOO shapes of gguards are illustrated. These guards can be arranged either transversely to the length of the strap or band, as in Fig. l, or longitudinally thereon and parallel with the length of the band or strap, as in Fig. 3,in i

either-.of which eases the guards will lie in a spiral lineon the stem when the strap or band is wound onthecylindrical body of the same. Thuswhere a strap is provided. with longitudinal guards, as in Fig, 3, and wound spirallyon the body of the stem, the guards will obviously run spirally on the stem 'from' end to end thereof, the teeth Isecured in the strap'between its longitudinal guard being under such4 arrangement situated in a space running spirally along the stein. The saine result will be attained by providing the strap with a series of short transverse guards, 'as

in'Fig. 13 since whenA such strap is wound spi/f rally about the body of the piekcwstem transverse ribs will form gnards'runnin'g in spiral lines along the picker-stem, snbstantially from end to` endA thereof, in Fig. 2. By Fig. et it'will be seenthat practically the same result is attained by the longitudinal ribs on the strap, the spiral being in this instance more gradual than in the others. But in these or in other forms in whiehthe guards can be arranged upon thestrap or band the result of a band provided with guards and wound about the body of the stern is preserved, whereby the band or strap can -be manufactured 'or provided with guards and teeth prior to'its application to the body of the stem, and hence a considerable length of the toothed strap provided with guards can be readily and economieallymadel VIt will'also be evident that b y lthis providing a bandor strap Withguards and afterward applying the same to the body of a picker'stem the relative position of the ends of the teeth to' t-he highest portionof the-guards can -be determined before the application ofthe teeth and guards to the stem.

operating the pickerstems',lwl1ic h mechanism consistsjof a rotary cylinder E for supporting several series4 of picker-stems radiating from the cylindenand each mounted so 'as to be susceptible' of rotating about` its own axis while it. is being carried round lwith the cylinder. The cylinder is arranged to rotate about a iixed axis or axle F, and containing a series of annular gears G, fixed at intervals on the stationary shaft F. `Under the arrangemen shown four radially-arranged,rotary pickerstems are operated from each onevof the gears G, for which purpose each picker-stem is provided with a gear II, fixed upon an axle I of the picker-stem and engaging one of the gears G within the cylinder. The axles of the picker-stems have their bearings in short pointbetween the two bearings. In this way v'8e when t-he cylinder' is rotated about its axis,

thc gears on the pickerstems`traveling on the stationary gears G, will necessarily turn, Vand hence cause an axial rotation of the picker-stems.

f The rotary cylinder is provided at one end with a gear K, engaged bya pinion L ron a driving-shaft, which latter can be operated yby any suitable gearing or equivalent connection between said shaft and the wheel of a cotton-harvester. The position of the cylinde'r may be varied`-as; for example, it can found most desirable. Having described my invention, what' I claim, and desireto secure by Letters Patent,- 1s- 1. A facing for arotary picker, consisting of be vertical, inclined, or horizontal, as may bef a toothed ,strapor band provided withguards, substantially as described.-

2. A facing for a rotary picker, consisting o'f a toothed strap provided with guards formed integral with the strap, substantially'as described'. A

3. .The bod yof a picker-stem, in combination with a Vspirally-wound strap provided with picker-teeth and 'ribsffwhich latter constitutc guards, substantially 'as and for the purpose'described.`

4,. A rotarygpicker-stem provided with an acting face' composed of a strap provided f with ribs and picker-teeth' and-wound about l the body of the stein, so as `to bring the ribs in position to form spiral guards, substantially as described. 'f

rc o

, 1.15 5. The rotar f cylinder, the fixed shaft, and

the annular gears rigid on said shaft, in colnbination withthe pickel-stems extending radany from and bearing infine cylinder, anagears an vsaid stems meshing with thefinnular gears, substantially as described.

- GEORGE N. Tenn Witnesses:

w.l WL ELLIOTT, JNO. G,4 ELLIOTT. 

